


What She Wishes

by lone_lamplight



Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale, 半妖の夜叉姫 | Hanyou no Yashahime | Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon (Anime)
Genre: Coming of Age, Fluff, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Platonic Relationships
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-20
Updated: 2021-03-27
Packaged: 2021-03-29 02:40:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,133
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30149481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lone_lamplight/pseuds/lone_lamplight
Summary: Lord Sesshomaru has always let Rin choose her own path. Rin has always trusted Sesshomaru’s judgement. But there comes a time when even the closest of traveling companions have a disagreement. A short fic about Rin growing up, and her devoted dog demon who’s trying to keep up with her.Set years later after the events of “Inuyasha,” after Rin has chosen to rejoin Sesshomaru after living in the village with Kaede, but before the events and relationship developments of “Yashahime.”This is my first Inuyasha fanfiction -- thank you for taking the time to read this story, and I hope you enjoy it! Feel free to leave a comment on what you think so far!
Relationships: Rin & Sesshoumaru (InuYasha), Rin/Sesshoumaru (InuYasha)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 42





	1. Not Quite the Same

“Master Jaken, do you smell smoke?”

Rin sat against A-Un’s belly, feet stretched in front of her, her nose scrunched toward the lightening sky. Closer to the cold ashes of last night’s fire, Jaken poked his head up.

“Smoke?” The imp's yellow eyes glided from the sky to the dark tree line beyond their campsite in the glade. “Nonsense.” He nestled back down into the folds of his robe. “Go back to sleep, Rin….”

“But it’s almost morning.” Rin reached a foot over to poke the groggy imp. “C’mon, Master Jaken.”

“Stop touching me,” he grumbled. “If you’re so awake already, go make yourself useful and get us some breakfast.”

“Aw, you’re no fun,” Rin sighed. Still, she rose from her position against A-Un and stretched her arms to the pale morning sky. “When’s Lord Sesshomaru coming back?”

“Lord Sesshomaru will return when Lord Sesshomaru is finished with his business.” Jaken’s annoyed yellow eyes snapped open to glare at Rin. “Now be quiet, you exhausting girl, and go fetch us some food!”

Rin rolled her eyes, but headed off into the forest anyway. A-Un shifted as he watched her disappear into the shade of the trees.

Jaken’s insults never packed any punch – though they were starting to grow old. Ever since Rin had rejoined him and Lord Sesshomaru after living for years in the village with Kaede, she felt like something was amiss between the three of them. But she wasn’t quite sure what that was yet. 

“If I'm an exhausting girl, Jaken, you're an exhausting imp,” Rin mumbled under breath as she wandered around the trees. “Ah!” She caught sight of the brook they had passed the evening before, the waters sparkling from the dappled sunlight that poked through the leaves. Sure enough, a few plump fish swam against the current, waggling around in the stream.

As she knelt by the brook, she felt a nudge at her back. The hot breath of her dragon companion puffed onto her neck.

“A-Un, you followed me!” Rin laughed as she turned and nuzzled one of the dragon’s heads. “Want to help me catch some fish?”

Instead of his usual warm willingness to go along with her plans, A-Un only rubbed his head against Rin’s shoulders and shifted from foot to foot.

“What is it?” she asked. A-Un nudged her a little harder, sending her stumbling into the brook behind her. She gasped at the cold water against her skin, though it was a little welcoming in the warming summer air. 

“Just give me a little more time to catch a fish,” she said. “Then we’ll go back, I promise.”

Rin bent down into the stream and trained her big brown eyes on a fat fish swimming around her feet. She readied her hands, wiggled her fingers, took a breath, and pounced into the cold water. When she poked her head above the surface again, her hands came up empty, and she let out an exasperated laugh.

“Next try, I guess,” she said. 

“Rin.”

That familiar deep voice pulled her attention from the brook to the bank in one swift whip of her head, her wet hair flying in clumps around her face.

“Lord Sesshomaru!” 

Like usual, the dog demon’s regal expression remained unmoving on his face, but Rin caught a hint of amusement flicker in his golden eyes at her display in the brook.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Catching some breakfast.” She slogged back over to the bank and wrung out her kimono. “Well, I’m trying to. I was never very good at this in the village.”

“We must leave here,” Lord Sesshomaru said. 

“Why.”

“An inferno is approaching.” 

“I knew I smelled smoke this morning!” Rin shook out her wrinkled kimono and stumbled toward A-Un as Sesshomaru made a move to leave the brook, his dragon behind him. “Master Jaken was denying he smelled anything. I guess I'm just smarter than him now.”

Sesshomaru glanced back for a moment at Rin’s wry, grinning face. “Naturally.” 

Rin laughed at his not-so-subtle jab at his vassal. Then her face fell just as quickly.

“Master Jaken!” she exclaimed. “He’s still asleep!”

“He will find his way.” Sesshomaru was already turning back around.

“We have to save him, Lord Sesshomaru!” Rin cried. “What if he doesn’t wake up in time?”

“You are not responsible for Jaken’s behavior.”

“But Lord Sessho—”

Rin cut off her words and ran to catch up with Sesshomaru, who now had Ah-Un’s reigns in his grasp.

“Climb on,” he commanded. Rin obeyed. “A-Un will carry you to safety.”

As the dragon rose into the sky, Rin started to behold the extent of the damage the fire was causing. Pillars of smoke rose into the otherwise bright-blue sky, and, creeping steadily forward, Rin could see it: A blinding orange blaze licking the trees, chasing the birds from the trees, roaring in the shrinking distance. The sight of it made her swallow a growing lump in her throat.

And then her eyes landed on the spot she had been lounging in earlier with A-Un and Jaken. Her stomach clenched. With the growing haze, it was hard to spot anything in that glade. Was Master Jaken still there? 

Sesshomaru was higher above her now, a flash of red and a puff of white. If she and A-Un went any higher, she wouldn’t be able to do what she was thinking of right now. 

It wasn’t the smartest move, she knew. It wasn’t what Sesshomaru had told her to do. But she also remembered something else he had told her in the past, something that she had never dared take advantage of at the expense of what her lord had instructed her to do. Why now, she wasn’t quite sure. Perhaps she’d know later once she saved her beloved friend.

“Lord Sesshomaru.”

Her lord looked down at her, and she steeled her eyes.

“I’m going after Master Jaken.”

She could almost see Sesshomaru’s golden eyes flash at her before she jumped out of the saddle and into the closest treetops she could find. Branches scratched her flesh as she tumbled downward in a controlled fall. When she finally smacked the ground, she had to cover her mouth. The approaching smoke from the blaze was close enough to choke out almost all the clean air.

But Rin pressed on. Without looking back, she ducked her head and plowed forward, retracing her steps back to the glade. With each step, the smoke grew thicker and harder to breathe in.

The trees thinned, and the tall grass was in sight. Rin left out a ragged sigh of relief. But then her eyes widened at the scene in front of her. Through the rapidly thickening smoke, she could see the heart-stopping orange flames, almost at the threshold of the clearing from the other side.

She had to find Jaken immediately. And then Lord Sesshomaru would find her. And then everything would be all right.

“Master Jaken!” she screamed into the smoke. “Master—”

Rin fell onto her knees gasping for air. The smoke had all but wrung out her lungs. But through her squinting eyes, she caught site of a small lump in the grass. 

“Master- Jaken—” Rin crawled toward the imp, and as the smoke disappeared between them, she discovered that Jaken had collapsed face-down, his staff on the ground next to his limp hand. She tried to work her arms underneath his body to lift him, but fell to her knees in the process. The smoke and the heat were growing unbearable. 

In the next moment, a strong arm encircled her, and the wind whipped around her as Lord Sesshomaru carried her into the air, away from the fire’s suffocating grip. Rin gulped in the fresh air as they ascended and blinked away the stinging smoke from her eyes. She caught sight of Jaken and his staff dangling from Sesshomaru’s other hand.

“Thank you, my lord.”

As she turned her eyes to his, her stomach twisted into a knot. Sesshomaru’s eyes blazed with an emotion that was normally reserved for Jaken. 

“Foolish girl.” 

Those two words made the knot in her stomach twist even harder.

With that, Sesshomaru broke gaze with her and flew away from the fire. Rin didn’t speak up the rest of the journey.


	2. Chapter 2: So Don't Worry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who read the first chapter of this story! It means so much to me, and I hope that you've enjoyed reading. :) My plan is to update this story on a weekly basis (probably every Friday). Thank you again, and I hope you enjoy Chapter 2! This chapter, we're going back in time for a little flashback before jumping back into the present story next chapter!

Rin squared her shoulders, clenched her fists at her side, and stared up at the dog demon, her big brown eyes resolute.

“Lord Sesshomaru,” she declared. “I’ve thought a lot about this. And I think it’s time I travel with you again.” She swallowed. “I know it’s only been a little while since I’ve started living in the village, but I’ve grown a lot. I know stuff now. And if I go with you, then you won’t have to keep coming back here and being around other humans! So… can I come?”

From up in the tree branch above her, Inuyasha popped an eye open and raised one of his dark eyebrows.

“He’s not gonna go for it, kid.”

“Aw, why not?! What’d I do wrong this time?” Rin groaned.

“It ain’t about what you say.” Inuyasha sat up and stretched and considered Rin standing below him. 

“Then what IS it about?”

“You gotta learn to live here. For longer than just a couple of months. Doesn't matter how nicely you ask,” he said, jumping down and landing in the soft grass next to Rin. 

“But how do you know? You and Lord Sesshomaru don’t get along anyway.”

“Yeah, and that’s why I know he ain’t gonna listen. Because he’s a stubborn—”

“Inuyasha.” Kaede came hiking up the hill toward the two of them, a look of warning shooting from her one eye. “Language, please.”

“And since when do I gotta listen to you, you old hag!?”

Kaede didn’t respond to Inuyasha’s spurs, and instead turned her attention to Rin, a gentle smile forming on her wrinkled face. “Rin. Care to help me gather some herbs from the gardens?”

“Oh! Sure,” Rin said. She glanced back at Inuyasha, who was still grinding his teeth at the old priestess. “See you later, Inuyasha. I’ll come back after I’m done with chores.”

“Whatever.”

Rin shrugged and jogged after Kaede, who was already making her way back down the hill toward the village. Halfway down, Rin couldn’t help but spin around and peer back toward the hilltop, walking backward beside Kaede. At one point, she tripped, and Kaede grasped her little arm to keep her on her feet.

“Watch where you are going, child,” she said. “What are you staring at?”

“I just… feel bad for Inuyasha,” Rin murmured as she turned back around. “He always looks so lonely without Kagome here.”

“He will learn to live without her,” Kaede said with a curt node of her head. “But grief takes time to journey through.”

A knot formed in Rin’s stomach as they continued toward the village.

“Do you think Kagome is lonely without him, too?”

“I suspect so.”

“Do you think….” Rin looked down and kicked a pebble with her bare foot, watching it bounce off the path and into the grass. “Do you think he’ll ever stop missing Kagome?”

“What do you mean?”

“What if he decides one day that he doesn’t miss her anymore?”

“Rin.” Kaede’s hand, still loosely wrapped around Rin’s arm, pulled her to a stop on the path. “What is on your heart?”

“What if—” Rin blinked back a few stray tears she hadn't realized had been forming in her eyes. “What if Lord Sesshomaru changes his mind—about letting me go with him again?”

“Has he told you that he will not consider the possibility?”

“No, but Inuyasha told me that if I asked him, he won’t say yes.”

“I expect if he says ‘no’ right now, it is because you have only lived here with us for such short a time.”

“That’s what Inuyasha said. But I’m ready now!”

“Are you?” Kaede prodded. “Or are you simply nervous that Sesshomaru will forget about you if you wait to ask him for much longer?”

Rin quieted at Kaede’s question, a couple tears breaking free to track down her cheeks. She slowly started to wipe them away with the sleeve of her kimono. It was a new one, a royal purple one, with flecks of golden stitching flashing in the sunshine. Her fingers ran over its cool, smooth surface. Lord Sesshomaru had gifted this to her not too long ago, and she had worn it as often as she could. Kaede seemed to sense her simmering thoughts, and she gave a knowing chuckle.

“I highly doubt someone who does not want to remain closely connected to someone else would come visit so often with such lavish gifts,” she said. 

“You think so?” Rin asked, grasping the sleeve of her kimono tighter.

“Rin, I know you wish to rejoin Sesshomaru. But these years will be important for you.”

“Years!?”

“You must learn what it means to live among humans again,” Kaede continued on patiently, “if you are to understand what it means to leave them to follow a demon. By understanding both worlds, you will learn wisdom, and you will learn about yourself. Sesshomaru knows this, as, I think, do you. Or am I wrong?”

“You’re not wrong, Lady Kaede….”

“He must learn as well.” 

Rin’s ears perked up at that, and she threw a bewildered look at Kaede.

“Lord Sesshomaru… must learn?” she asked.

“Aye,” Kaede said. “I am quite certain he misses your company. But he also must learn what it means to live without you by his side.”

“So, you think Lord Sesshomaru won’t forget about me, even after… years?”

“So many questions, child.” Kaede chuckled again and gave Rin’s back a little push to start her walking down the path again. “Do I look like I know such answers?”

“Maybe you do!”

Kaede’s gaze shifted back to Inuyasha’s lone figure on the hilltop, sitting and waiting.

“Demons do not forget so easily,” she murmured. “But what I wish is for your happiness, Rin. And for you to understand yourself.”

A moment later, Kaede gave a slight jump as Rin looped an arm around hers as they continued to walk.

“Thank you, Lady Kaede,” she murmured. 

“For what, child?”

“For listening. I feel a little better now.” Rin smiled sadly. “And I think I know what I want to tell Lord Sesshomaru next time I see him.”

Rin didn’t have to wait many more days before Lord Sesshomaru returned to visit, a glowering Jaken in tow. They arrived near the end of the day, as the sun was just beginning to cast a golden glow over everything.

“Despite his prestigious journey to build his empire, Lord Sesshomaru has returned to visit the lowly human girl,” the little imp announced. His head was met with a swift kick. Rin couldn’t help but giggle at the display.

As Jaken nursed his ego in the forest beside A-Un, Rin led Lord Sesshomaru up to the hilltop where she and Inuyasha had been a few days prior.

“I wanted to show you something,” Rin said, pointing into the valley below where the village sat. Lord Sesshomaru, as always, stood with an impassive stare on his face, but Rin could tell he was listening by the way his eyes studied her excitedly pointing hand and followed where she gestured.

“Lady Kaede and I have been gardening over there—” Rin pointed to the patch of garden just visible from the hilltop to her eyes, though she knew Lord Sesshomaru could see it just fine, “—and she taught me how to care for a few new herbs.” She grinned up at Lord Sesshomaru. “So now I know how to grow some medicines for people in the village!”

“Hn.” Rin grinned wider at his acknowledgement. 

“I just wanted to show you from here, since I know you don’t like being around humans,” she said. “And also so we can watch the sunset. It’s really beautiful from up here.”

“Rin.”

“Yes, Lord Sesshomaru?”

“I trust the priestess has been taking care of you?”

“Oh, yes! Lady Kaede has been wonderful!”

Lord Sesshomaru gave the smallest of nods to her answer, and then continued to stare out across the valley. Rin shimmied up the trunk of the tree behind them and planted herself on the lowest branch, which happened to be right near Lord Sesshomaru’s eye level. He regarded her for a moment as she situated herself, and then faced forward once more.

Rin stared at the back of Lord Sesshomaru’s head and watched as a faint breeze brushed through his long, shining locks of hair. She wondered if she’d ever get the chance to feel how smooth his hair was.

“I… wanted to say something to you, too,” she said to the back of his head. “The other day, I thought about asking you if I could travel with you again. But I’m not going to ask that. At least, not now.” Rin wrung her hands for a moment before continuing. “I’ll wait a little while longer. So that I – so that we both can learn how to live without each other.”

Rin jumped when Lord Sesshomaru turned to look at her. His yellow eyes looked more intense, more saturated with color in the glow of sunset. Or maybe it was Rin’s imagination. She couldn’t read what expression was brewing behind his still-impassive face.

“And, Inuyasha told me that you’d probably say no anyway if I asked now.”

She heard the smallest of growls come from deep in Lord Sesshomaru’s chest.

“Inuyasha does not speak on my behalf,” he said.

“Well, I know that, but I think he was right,” Rin said. As Lord Sesshomaru’s eyes narrowed, she added quickly: “Right?”

Lord Sesshomaru didn’t answer her, but his silence and stillness was enough of a confirmation for Rin.

“So that’s what I’ll do,” she said with a nod. “I’ll wait a little while longer, and I’ll learn how to live. But I’ll still choose to be with you, no matter how many years I have to stay here.” She grinned at him. “So don’t worry. I won’t stop missing you. And I know you won’t stop missing me.”

This time, it was Rin’s turn to look out over the valley while Lord Sesshomaru continued to peer at her for a moment longer. Finally, his gaze shifted back into the distance. They stayed that way until the sun dipped behind the hills and the stars began to flicker in the sky. With a warm, sad feeling in her chest, Rin found the moment had propelled her back to traveling with Lord Sesshomaru, and she wondered if he felt that sadness too, gazing at the same sky as her, knowing that they’d have to part before morning.


End file.
